Legacy: The Hogwarts Class of 1978
by aprilgirl01
Summary: Each generation of Hogwarts brings a fresh crop of promising new wizards and witches. But, unbeknownst to us, my generation would be the stuff of legends. I am Mary MacDonald, the only one still alive from the Hogwarts class of 1978. So it falls on me to tell you all the stories of my peers.
1. Introduction

***I don't own HP***

**A/N: This is a rewrite of Legacy. However, re-reading Half-Blood Prince, I found out that Emmeline actually did die, so she cannot be my main character! I hope this is still cannon, I think it is. Told from the perspective of a cannon character, but she is pretty OC in personality. Also, I've tried to be as cannon as possible, but there are some places, and there will be some whole chapters, with OC's.**

You know about Lily Evans, James Potter, Sirius Black, and so many others of their time, who fought, some like heroes, some not, until they died. You may even know a little about me. But I doubt it. My name is Mary MacDonald. I am the last one. The final one standing. The only one left. I am the only living student from the Hogwarts class of 1978.

My classmates, almost the entire wizarding world knows of them. But I am the last one who really knew them, as people, not just as soldiers. So it falls upon my shoulders to tell the stories of all thirty two of my classmates, for I am the only one who can tell their legacies now.

In 1972, Hagrid led yet another boatload of first years up to the castle to be sorted. By now, this was routine for him, and everyone else at Hogwarts. But, unbeknownst to everyone in the castle, we would be the generation that stood out. But nobody could have seen it coming. Lest of all myself or my peers.

I remember being on those boats. Hogwarts loomed over the black lake, and as we approached, trepidation rose within all of us. Hogwarts seemed like the biggest step we would ever take.

Professor McGonagall led us into the hall. Everyone stared at us. I think we were all nervous. I know I was. A tall, dark-haired girl sidled up to me.

"Are you afraid?"

"No," I replied, without hesitation, "Just apprehensive."

This girl nodded. Little did I know that this was Marlene McKinnon; fated to be my best friend. And fated for a terrible end.

Just then, I remember, the sorting started. One by one, students were called up. I can't recall each one, but a few stuck in my brain.

When "Black, Sirius!" was sorted into Gryffindor, the commotion was louder than I ever thought it could be. The Gryffindors were cheering, but the Slytherins were screaming, booing, rioting. I didn't understand back then, the gravity of what house you were in. I do know.

"Dearborn, Caradoc!" Took the longest time to sort. It took eight minutes for the hat to finally declare him a Hufflepuff.

"Evans, Lily!" took the shortest amount of time to sort. Practically a second after the hat touched her head, she became a Gryffindor.

After that, I remember zoning out, until "MacDonald, Mary!" was called. Two minutes in, I became a Gryffindor.

After we were all sorted, the feast began. That day, I think, sealed our fates. Had one person been sorted differently, Sirius into Slytherin, or Lily into Ravenclaw, for example, things might have been completely different. The rundown was:

_Gryffindor_

James Potter

Sirius Black

Peter Pettigrew

Remus Lupin

Lily Evens

Mary MacDonald

Marlene McKinnon

Alice Creir

Alyssa Prewett

_Slytherin_

Severus Snape

Avery Thoms

Mulciber Harvend

Antonin Dolohov

Leonna Schmitt

Maxine Greengrass

Natalie Parkinson

Tiffany Warton

_Hufflepuff_

Benjy Fenwick

Edgar Bones

Caradoc Dearborn

Dedalus Diggle

Amelia Bones

Madalina Boot

Gracie Abbot

Nadia Patil

_Ravenclaw_

Edward Doge

Jordan Boot

Maxwell Brown

Charles Gutherson

Penelope Braithswaite

Emmeline Vance

Dorcas Meadows

Tina Quirke

And there we were. The 33 of us, all bumbling little first years, had no idea that only I would live to have grandchildren. And while many of my peers never even had a family, they all had a story. I can remember vividly how each one died, and I feel it is my duty to share all of their legacies with you.

**A/N: Hey, I'm sorry about the confusion, but I can't stand non-cannon stories, and I found out that Emmeline Vance actually did die during Half Blood Prince. Next chapter will start the stories. Please review! It means a ton to me!**


	2. Madalina Boot

**Thank you to Rueflower7 and yzzilbe for your amazing reviews!**

***I don't own Harry Potter***

Seven years after that fateful night with the sorting hat, all of us seventh years were ready to make our mark on the real world, and have problems other than last-minute homework assignments. I remember graduating with Marlene, both of us having achieved high NEWTs, both of us heading for the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

In those first two months, things were not easy. You-Know-Who was on the rise, yet all 33 of us were still too naïve to notice much. Then, two months after we left our haven of Hogwarts, disaster struck for the first time.

I remember sitting at my desk at work, going over some briefs with Marlene and our boss, Gideon Prewett. Then, the unexpected face of Tina Quirke burst into the office, gasping, red-faced, with puffy eyes. One of the older men tried to stop her, but she whispered something in his ear, and he let her pass. Marlene and I stood up.

"Tina, what's-" I remember Marlene running up to her, guiding Tina into a chair as Tina got out, in shaky breaths,

"Marlene… Mary, it's Madalina Boot, you know, the Hufflepuff… she's gone… she's dead…"

I remember the words taking some time to process. Madalina couldn't be dead. Even though we were out of Hogwarts, we were really still kids; we still felt invincible. Madalina's death shattered our bubbles of invincibility.

Nothing bad happened at Hogwarts. Ever. Sure, I got cursed once by Mulciber, and had to go to Saint Mungo's, sure, there was prejudice against muggle borns, but at Hogwarts, nobody died. Everyone got their happy ending.

I remember Marlene breaking down into tears. Then, I felt a searing pain in my palm. I looked down to see that, in my shock, I had crushed an ink bottle, and my hand had been cut.

Then I passed out.

But my story isn't the important part here. Madalina's death brought us harshly into the adult world, where pain and grief did exist. Not many people remember her, and when they do, they remember her as "one of the first to die in a war."

But Madalina was never a soldier. The war shaped us all, made us tough. Madalina was still a child, still seventeen.

Madalina was… well, she was the nicest kid you ever knew, with a crazy talent for charms. I think Professor Flitwick always wished she had been in his house. Her laugh was infectious. She was my partner in charms during my first and second years at Hogwarts. She was the only reason I passed Flitwick's class those two years.

In third year, we began to drift apart. In the next five years, her best friends were Gracie Abbot, Nadia Patil, and Amelia Bones. I would love to ask one of them more about her time at Hogwarts, but that will never happen. Not now.

Madalina was sweet on Maxwell Brown. Everyone knew that. They started going out seventh year. Unlike Lily and James, their relationship was very slow. Neither of them planned on getting married any time soon. But I think we all found them adorable.

On the day she died, Madalina blew up a cauldron. She was trying to fix a potion to get rid of her hiccups, but she had never been good at potions. So, Madalina floo'ed in to Diagon Alley, to buy a new cauldron.

At precisely noon that day, there was a huge explosion in the Leakey Cauldron. Then, Death Eaters swarmed in by the hundreds. The survivors of the attack are few, and they say that the Dark Mark was projected into the sky dozens of times. Many people died, including Madalina. One survivor told me that he saw her get hit in the back with the killing curse.

In some ways, it is good that Madalina died. She was a sweet, happy girl, nicer and more optimistic than the rest of us. The war would have crushed her.

What else did I know about Madalina? She had a cat. She was an only child. She was a pureblood. Her family could trace lineage back to Helga Hufflepuff herself. She loved tongue twisters. She scored highest in the grade on every single charms assessment, except for our third year exam, where Lily Evans beat her by four percent. She liked to sing.

Maybe, if Madalina hadn't blown up her cauldron, things could have gone differently. But she did.

I remember gathering at Nadia Patil's house with Nadia, Marlene, Amelia, Gracie, Lily, Alyssa and Alice. As the girls of Hufflepuff and Gryffindor, we had been good friends at Hogwarts. Amelia, Gracie and Nadia sobbed, and it fell on me, Lily, Alice, Marlene, and Alyssa to give them hugs and comfort them, while we cried alongside them.

I remember Emmeline Vance showed up, Penelope, Dorcas and Tina in tow. All day, we sat in Nadia's living room, talking, laughing, and crying. The boys showed up eventually, as well. James had followed Lily, and everyone else followed James. Everyone was there, except for the Slytherins. We ended up all crashing at Nadia's house, and when we parted the next morning, saying goodbye, we left as adults.

Madalina's death changed all of us. No longer were we kids playing adults, her loss had turned us into grown-ups.

Now we were 32. James, Sirius, Peter, Remus, Lily, Marlene, Alice, Alyssa, Severus, Avery, Mulciber, Antonin, Leonna, Maxine, Natalie, Tiffany, Benjy, Edgar, Caradoc, Dedalus, Nadia, Amelia, Gracie, Edward, Jordan, Maxwell, Charles, Dorcas, Penelope, Tina, Emmeline, and me; Mary.

**There we have it! The next chapter should be up soon. I have a lot of OC's coming up, but I will try to make everything as cannon as possible. Please review! Constructive criticism is welcome!**


	3. Maxwell Brown

**Thank you yzzilbe for continuing to review!**

***I don't own HP***

One week after Madalina's death, I received an owl from Dumbledore, inviting me to the Hog's Head at noon. So I apparated into Hogsmeade, and walked to the pub. I remember opening the door, and being shocked to find all the faces of my peers (excluding my Slytherin classmates), along with a few people who I didn't know, staring back at me. I saw Dorcas in a corner, and slid into a seat next to her.

At the front of the deserted pub was Dumbledore. He held up his hands, and I remember everyone quieting down- just like at Hogwarts. Dumbledore looked at all of us, and said, "You are probably wondering why I brought you here. In light of, ah, certain circumstances, we are one fewer than we should be. However, this is an issue that cannot be ignored any longer."

I remember him taking a deep breath. I remember wondering- could Dumbledore be _nervous_?

"Lord Voldemort is a threat to our entire society. I have appealed to the ministry over and over, yet they are hopelessly lost. So I have gathered you, some of my most recent Hogwarts graduates, and some of my most trustworthy former students, to ask- if I were to give you a chance to fight Voldemort, even if it meant risking your life- would you take it?"

Lily Evans raised her hand- just as if she was in school. "Sir, I don't understand."

Dumbledore smiled at her, his bright eyes twinkling. "Lily, you do not have to call me "Sir" anymore. You are an adult now."

Lily blushed.

"Anyways. I think it is time to take action. Voldemort needs to be taken down. I am forming… an Order of sorts, and I wish you to be the members. Together, we will defeat Voldemort."

I remember it getting really quiet. We had just been invited to help take down the darkest wizard of all time. And yet, nobody wanted to make the first move.

Out of the corner of my eye, I remember seeing James Potter whisper something to his friends. They nodded, and all four of them stood up. James spoke.

"We're in."

Everyone else followed.

And just like that, the Order of the Phoenix was born.

The Order soon consumed our lives. Wake up. Work. Come home. Order meeting. Sleep. Repeat. It became our routine. The Hog's Head, owned by a member of the Order, became our meeting place. I remember the last meeting of the entire order.

"Albus, we need to start doing things. We've been planning for just under three months. It's time to take action."

"Maxwell, you need to be patient. We aren't ready yet. If I let you go of a mission, you could die. I saw we wait another month."

"But Albus-"

"Maxwell. It's too risky. Wait another month, and I promise I'll let you go on a mission."

I remember how Maxwell ran a tired hand through his close-cropped blond hair. His eyes, once bright, honey-brown, had dulled ever since the death of his girlfriend, Madalina, three months prior. When I close my eyes, I can see clearly the frustrated look on his face, the broken look in his eyes. Marlene leaned over to me and whispered,

"He's going to go, whether Albus likes it or not. Don't you see, Mary? He's given up."

I nodded. "He must have loved Madalina more than he let on."

I remember the way Maxwell slammed his palms on the table, as he rose. "Albus," he boomed, and his voice echoed across the pub, "The love of my life was taken by the Death Eaters. I will get my revenge, and I cannot wait another day."

Dumbledore looked piercingly at Maxwell. His eyes, I recall, were big and sad. He didn't want to risk any of us, but I think Dumbledore saw that Maxwell was already gone.

"Fine." The old man's voice was quiet. I remember the sadness in Dumbledore's voice, as he gave Maxwell instructions.

"The Death Eaters have been meeting at an old pub in Knockturn Alley. Tonight, I believe, they will be there, discussing their own plans. I want you to go and spy on them, gather intelligence. We cannot win this war without being a step ahead of our enemies."

I knew Maxwell wanted action. He looked as if he was about to argue, then he slumped back in his chair. "Fine. You can count on me. I'm going home to get ready."

The Order meeting ended, and that was the last time any of us saw Maxwell.

We gathered at the Hog's Head early the next morning, eager to see how the first mission had gone. I remember the confusion when neither Dumbledore nor Maxwell showed up. We waited for an hour. Then two. Three hours later, Dumbledore strode in.

"Albus, what-"

"Where's Maxwell? How-"

"Did everything go-"

"Oh, my gosh, Albus, he isn't-"

"Oh, no, Maxwell-"

Dumbledore looked at us over the top of his spectacles, and said, "Maxwell did not come back from his mission. I recovered the body this morning."

Everything went silent. No. Not another one.

I remember the grief that followed. One more friend to mourn. And we had just been recovering from Madalina.

What followed was a lot like what had happened after Madalina. Maxwell's best mate had been Charles Gutherson. We all went to Charles's house, and stayed the night. There were tears. There were words said. I think we were all happy to know that, no matter where Maxwell was now, he was with Madalina. And that was what he had really wanted.

A few things about Maxwell at school. He was in Ravenclaw; the only one who could rival James in Transfiguration. He was very much an extrovert, and would talk to anyone about anything. He was a half blood. He had a younger brother. I went on a date with him once, in fifth year. We decided to just be friends. He was a beater on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. He held extra-help sessions for the younger kids who were struggling with Transfiguration. He loved licorice wands.

Before Madalina died, his laugh was loud and booming. He was a very tall man, the tallest in our year at 6 foot 3, and he was broad shouldered. He was our gentle giant- would never hurt a fly.

Maxwell was best mates with Charles, but he was friendly to everyone- all the Ravenclaws loved him, anyone in the school would return his smile.

What happened to him was what never got to happen to Madalina. He grew up too quickly. He stopped smiling so much. He stopped laughing.

If he had been patient, if he had waited until Dumbledore thought he was ready, would he still be alive? Maybe, but he would never be the same.

Now we were 31. James, Sirius, Peter, Remus, Lily, Marlene, Alice, Alyssa, Severus, Avery, Mulciber, Antonin, Leonna, Maxine, Natalie, Tiffany, Benjy, Edgar, Caradoc, Dedalus, Nadia, Amelia, Gracie, Edward, Jordan, Charles, Dorcas, Penelope, Tina, Emmeline, and me; Mary

**To clear up some confusion, I added the names of the Slytherins to the list of the remaining people because they were part of that generation, but none of them were in the Order.**

**Coming up is a cannon character, though she is OC in personality.**

**This chapter was kind of long, because I always imagined the Order getting set up after someone died, and I needed to put it in. If you are confused, have questions, like the story, love the story, have constructive criticism for the story, please let me know by reviewing!**


	4. Marlene McKinnon

**Hey guys! I couldn't wait to post this- I had an inspirational day. **

***I don't own Harry Potter***

"_That's Marlene McKinnon, she was killed two weeks after this was taken, they got her whole family."- Mad-eye Moody_

The time of day was evening, three months after Maxwell's mission. I remember the air blasting on just as we stepped up to the podium.

"Thank you all for coming today. As Marlene's closest friends, it falls on us to write a speech, for this wonderful girl who died a true Gryffindor, as nobody in her family is left to do it for her."

"Marlene McKinnon was a great friend. She was sassy, and loved making fun of us, but in the end, nobody had your back like she did."

"One of her mottos was 'I can make fun of my friends, but nobody else can.'"

"She was brilliant in defense at school, and a valued member of this Order. People like Marlene are spread far and thin on this Earth; we should be glad we ever knew her."

"But Marlene would not want us to go cry over her. She'd want us to do something about her death; avenge her."

"If, before now, any little piece of you had doubts about joining the Order of the Phoenix, let Marlene's death assure you that you are doing the right thing. We need to stop He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named before more are taken from us."

"Learn from Marlene. It's what she would have wanted, and it's the right thing to do."

Lily crumpled the paper that she had finished reading from, and fled out of the room. Alice, Alyssa and I exchanged tearful glances, then ran after her.

This was Marlene's private funeral, Order only. As Gryffindor girls, we had known Marlene the best, and as the death eaters had killed her whole family, we had to present a speech on her behalf. Lily had had the closing lines, and had not been able to handle it.

But I remember that before we ever went on a mission, Marlene would always address the Order and say:

"If I die on this mission, do not grieve. Learn from my death and do not screw up and make the same mistakes that led me to die."

Then she would come back from the mission later, an insane glint in her eyes, and she'd yell, "I'M NOT DEAD YET!"

That's when Lily would either tell her to shut up or, on a bad day, just cast a silencing hex on her.

Marlene was our humor. Perhaps that why she got along with Sirius so well- the two of them could brighten up any room.

In fact, Marlene more than just _got along_ with Sirius. She was the first, and last, steady girlfriend he ever had. I remember, the night Marlene died, I went over to James and Lily's place to visit Lily, only to find Sirius crying on the couch, James next to him, a bottle of firewhisky in his hand.

Sorry, I'm getting sentimental again.

Marlene was a lunatic, and I knew it from my very first day at Hogwarts. I was scared- being a muggle born, I was not accustomed to all the crazy magic, and I was homesick. Marlene came up to me and, to cheer me up, jumped off a staircase. It only freaked me out, but it took my mind off of being homesick.

I think she was on first name basis with Madam Pomfrey- seconded only to Remus and James (he tended to get very violent after a quiditch match).

Oh- and Professor McGonagall hated her. You could say she hated James to, but James was good at transfiguration, so McGonagall couldn't help but like him. Marlene set something on fire almost every lesson.

Let's see…what else is important about Marlene?

Ah. She played quiditch. She and Sirius were the best beaters Gryffindor ever saw until the Weasley twins came along a few decades later.

One more thing. Marlene was fiercely loyal. In sixth year, Avery and Mulciber… well, I'm not going to talk about what exactly they did, but let's just say they put me in Saint Mungo's, and the next day were found naked, hanging from a chandelier in the Great Hall from bright pink pairs of underwear. She never confessed, but we all know who did it.

Now, this makes Marlene sound a bit like a class clown. And she was. Very much so. But on the battlefield… McKinnon was a feared name. We saved a lot of lives in the Order, and many were because of Marlene. Usually, Dorcas, Lily and James would organize missions, but Emmeline, Sirius and Marlene were second in command, and leaders on the battlefield.

Let's get a little more serious here.

When Marlene died… Nobody knew about it. We had all come in to an early morning Order meeting, and Sirius and Marlene were missing. Nobody blinked twice about it, we assumed they were off together somewhere.

Half an hour into the meeting, the doors opened with a bang, and a bloodshot Sirius came staggering in. Immediately, the other marauders rose, and clustered around him, talking in low voices that the rest of us couldn't hear.

I remember hearing a sob come from… Remus. Remus, who never cried, at least not in front of everyone. James eventually turned to the rest of us, biting his lip to keep the tear in.

"Marlene McKinnon is dead!"

Everyone. Fell. Silent.

The thing is, she had always been the invincible one. Her dying seemed unfathomable. But… in the end, even the bravest of us was as mortal as the rest.

Her family had been ambushed in the night, and for all of our planning, spying, and gathering intelligence, we had been caught completely off guard. The McKinnon family was one of the oldest wizarding families around, and they were completely eradicated that night….

So yeah. Marlene McKinnon. Crazy, loyal, sassy, daring, brave, and a fighter. Until the very end. But hey- we learned from her, and we were renewed. For months after, the Order worked with a new vigor to avenge all the casualties-especially Marlene's.

Now we were 30. James, Sirius, Peter, Remus, Lily, Alice, Alyssa, Severus, Avery, Mulciber, Antonin, Leonna, Maxine, Natalie, Tiffany, Benjy, Edgar, Caradoc, Dedalus, Nadia, Amelia, Gracie, Edward, Jordan, Charles, Dorcas, Penelope, Tina, Emmeline, and me; Mary.

**A/N: There we go! Nooooo! I really didn't want to kill off Marlene, but it had to happen…. Anyway, I hope this chapter was a bit different- I am trying to vary my chapters, and as we get into more defined cannon characters, the chapters will get better. Promise!**

**Please review, it means a lot! **


	5. Leonna Schmitt

**Shoutout to NumberOneMGGfan for your amazing review!**

***I still don't (and never will) own any part at all of HP***

I'm going to be frank with you. This chapter is different. It's about family politics, and how people can make or break a child, and it's about wasted talents.

Brace yourselves, because this chapter is about Leonna Schmitt, the snarkiest, slyest, slipperiest little pride of Slytherin.

Now, let me make one thing clear. I do not, in any way shape or form, have a grudge against Slytherin house. I will be fair and say that honestly, the students in Slytherin have some of the most potential I ever saw during my seven years at Hogwarts.

However. There were probably plenty of good Slytherins, who grew up to do great things and who were good people, but what the younger generation does not understand, is that during my generation at Hogwarts, being a Slytherin came with pressure.

Voldemort was on the rise. He was recruiting, mainly in his old house. The Slytherins had the luck to be that house. But… as Slytherins are most always purebloods, the families are connected. That means that somewhere in almost every Slytherin student's family tree was at least one family member who was a death eater. Which put a lot of pressure on the kids to live up to being death eaters.

Leonna was a perfect example of that. I remember her as a little first year. Sharp as a whip, cunning, ambitious, she exemplified all the best parts of her house.

As the years went on, though, she changed. Her first two years, Leonna could be found helping her housemates (and once and a while some of the Ravenclaws or Hufflepuffs, but never the Gryffindors) when they were confused in charms, for she was brilliant in charms. Flitwick loved her.

In third year, I guess the pressure started to get to her. Maybe Leonna's family had been telling her that she wasn't good enough, she had to be better and "prune the tree of purebloods, take out those who are not worthy".

So, yeah. Leonna spiraled into somebody who used her gifts for bad, not for good. And it's a shame. She could have been great. But like so many other innocent kids, such as Regulus Black, maybe her family convinced her that she really was better than everyone, and being a death eater was a good thing. Maybe she was pressured or threatened into joining up. Whatever the case, Leonna became a threat to the Order, her great intellect was shaped to a dark cause.

After Marlene died, there was a lot of grief. But after that grief dulled, not lessened, just dulled, we had a good, productive four months. I'm going to tell you a little tale that at first, gave the Order of the Phoenix nothing but joy.

The Prewett twins were older than most of us by two years. Brilliant fighters, strategists, and friends. I think James really looked up to them, they were like older versions of himself. Gideon and Fabien were heroes in our minds.

Their house was attacked twice. Now, I'm going to talk about the first time. The two called an emergency Order meeting, in which they told us that they were ambushed at their house by a handful of death eaters, and while they managed to get out alive, they were sure the dark wizards would be coming back soon.

Dumbledore assured them that the proper protection would be set up. He himself became their secret keeper.

Then, as an afterthought, Fabien turned to us, and said, "Oh, and one of the death eaters mask fell off. I think she was in your year… Leonna Schmitt?"

A few of us nodded in affirmation. "She's dead." Fabien looked down at his hands, a shattered look in his eyes. "I… killed her…"

There were words of comfort, assurances that Fabien was not a bad person, yet I remember standing off to the side with Emmeline, the pride of Ravenclaw house. Only the two of us understood.

Loss. All of Leonna's talent… wasted, and gone forever.

Shame. That was a girl from our year, it brought just a little shame to our class.

Grief. One more of us gone, one less of us to hold on to memories that only we knew.

But then we swallowed and looked away, and I turned back to my smiling throng of friends. Lily saw my face and asked,

"Mary, are you okay? Come on, we're celebrating. The twins outsmarted the death eaters! We can do this!"

I remember smiling. "Of course," I said, "Now hand me that firewhisky."

And the subject of Leonna was closed.

But now there were 29 of us. James, Sirius, Peter, Remus, Lily, Alice, Alyssa, Severus, Avery, Mulciber, Antonin, Maxine, Natalie, Tiffany, Benjy, Edgar, Caradoc, Dedalus, Nadia, Amelia, Gracie, Edward, Jordan, Charles, Dorcas, Penelope, Tina, Emmeline, and me; Mary.

** A/N: I know this wasn't my best chapter, I'm sorry. I just had some trouble getting the story to flow. The next chapter will definitely be better.**

**So, I respect Slytherin (although I myself am a Ravenclaw) and I tried to portray them fairly. Tell me what you think of my portrayal below!**

** Thanks to the people who have followed/favorited this story! If you don't mind me asking, please tell me in the comments what you liked about it, and what I should/can improve on!**


	6. Tina Quirke

**A/N: Does the surname Quirke ring any bells? Probably not for most of you. But if you look in Goblet of Fire, during the sorting, one of the first year's names is "Orla Quirke." Mentioned once, then never again. Go back and read it- she's there. So I created Tina to be Orla's aunt. Just a tidbit.**

***I do not own HP (still)***

The marauders. The inseparable, infamous, most well-known group of friends of the era.

Yeah, everyone knows their story. And I knew it to. After all, I only lived with them in Gryffindor for seven years. And sure, eventually I _will_ talk about them. But now, I'm going to describe a different friendship to you. One less well known, but just as tight. The friendship of Tina Quirke and Penelope Braithswaite.

Tina and Penelope. Penelope and Tina. They were thick as thieves. Ravenclaws, dormmates with Emmeline and Dorcas, who were also best friends. But their story is also for later.

I must say- everyone thinks that the story of the marauders is tragic- and it is- but just as bad is the story of Tina and Penelope.

Their story starts at Hogwarts- first year. I was a quiet kid back then, shy and meek, nervous at being introduced to a whole new world of magic. So I spent a lot of time sitting in the background, observing the other first years. I remember spending a lot of time watching the two of them.

Emmeline and Dorcas were the brilliant ones. They were naturally drawn to each other, connected over their heightened intelligence, being top of their class. Tina and Penelope… they were complete opposites.

Tina was a vibrant, outgoing, confident pureblood. She easily befriended most of the girls in our year, and charmed most of the adults with her clever wit.

Penelope was different. She was like me- quiet, muggle born, a little scared of being the center of attention, with a brilliant memory.

But Tina decided early on that she wanted to befriend her shy, smart housemate. I watched them become friends simply because they had no other options.

By second year they were as close as James and Sirius.

In third year, they signed up for all the same classes.

In fourth year, Tina was in the hospital wing with a severe concussion for four days from quiditch (she was a keeper), and Penelope skipped classes the whole week and sat with her in the hospital wing.

In fifth year, Penelope got called a mudblood by Mucliber, and Tina got into such a big duel with him on Penelope's behalf, Mulciber was left unconscious for three days.

In sixth year, they signed up for all the same NEWT classes.

In seventh year, they both got internships in Scotland with Gringotts. Together, of course.

So there's a little background on the two of them. Because the next two chapters are about their friendship.

Let's continue where we left off. Not two weeks after the incident with Leonna and the Prewetts, Order business got shaken up again. I remember this day so, so clearly.

I was at my office in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, packing up for the day, about to head home. Most of the office had already left, but I had stayed late to tie up some loose ends on a couple juvenile cases. That's when I got the owl.

_Mary-_ it said,

_Mary, go out the back door, and meet me a block west from the exit. There's been another attack, and I need your help investigating. Tell nobody._

_-Lily._

_P.S.- my patronus is a doe, which matches my husband, James's patronus, which is a stag. _

I bit my lip. Another attack? Why was this one so special that Lily had to owl me right away? But her P.S. proved it was her.

See, we had a system for determining imposters. Everybody had one designated question that proved that they really were who they said they were. So yeah, I knew that Lily really did need my help. But why?

I did as she said, and apparated a block west from the back door exit of my department. I spun around, looking for Lily.

I saw what she needed me for immediately.

"_Oh my-"_

"Mary!" I saw a flash of bright red hair, as Lily came running up to me from behind the building that I had been staring at, James hot on her heels.

What's so special about this little shack?

The dark mark was raised above it. Someone was dead inside.

Then I knew why Lily needed me. We had a rule in the Order- you never investigated a scene where the Mark had been raised in groups of less than three. My office was close to the scene, making me the best person to help.

"Lils, who's-"

"Dead? I don't know. James, are there any-"

"No, whoever did the murder apparated off right away. Should we go in?"

Lily nodded, biting her lip. "James, stand guard outside the door."

Her husband nodded, and, wands raised, she and I entered the shack. Lily gasped.

There, lying dead on the floor, was Tina Quirke. Upon closer investigation, her body bore signs of the cruciatus curse. I remember almost puking.

Lily called in James, and the rest is a blur to me, now.

How we got the body back to the Order? I don't remember. I don't remember exactly how we broke the news that Tina was dead to her family either. The one thing I do remember, though, is the exact expression on Penelope's face when she saw her dead best friend- no, more like sister- lying before her.

Loss. Grief. Those flitted briefly across Penelope's face, before being replaced with a thirst for vengeance, to make Tina's murderer pay.

Tina's death changed Penelope. She was no longer the quiet, sweet kid we all knew and loved, she had become filled with a burning desire to avenge Tina's death.

Did she track down the killer? That's a story for another day.

But sitting at Tina's funeral with Lily and Alice and Alyssa, listening to Penelope speak, I reflected.

Now there were 28 of us. James, Sirius, Peter, Remus, Lily, Alice, Alyssa, Severus, Avery, Mulciber, Antonin, Maxine, Natalie, Tiffany, Benjy, Edgar, Caradoc, Dedalus, Nadia, Amelia, Gracie, Edward, Jordan, Charles, Dorcas, Penelope, Emmeline, and me; Mary.

**A/N: Thank you to NumberOneMGGfan again and yzzilbe for your amazing reviews!**

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** I hope you guys liked this chapter, I hope it's a bit better than the last one.**

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	7. Penelope Braithswaite

_Hey guys! I'm sorry the update took so long! But here it is. I hope you like it._

_Disclaimer: I don't own HP_

_._

If you go to the Ministry, with the right connections, you can find any person in the Wizarding World's files and read them. Luckily, I have those connections. I did read many of the files after the war was over, and I remember Penelope's very vividly.

Looking into Penelope's files, one would know the following.

_Name: Penelope Braithswaite_

_Birthday: June 9__th__, 1960_

_OWLS: E's in Transfiguration, Charms, and Astronomy. O's in Potions and Muggle Studies. A's in Defense Against the Dark Arts. P's- none. D's in History of Magic and Herbology. T's- none._

_NEWTS: O's in Potions and Transfiguration. E's in Charms and Astronomy. A's in Herbology._

_Job: Employed at the Apothecary in Diagon Alley_

_Death: July 24__th__, 1979_

So basically, you would know that she loved potions, hated Herbology (yet had to take it in order to work at the Apothecary), was pretty good at Transfiguration, and about average in everything else. She took Muggle Studies because she was a Muggle Born, therefore she assumed it would be an easy O. Apparently, she was right.

Yes, Penelope was a Ravenclaw. Yes, she liked to learn. But here is where it gets tricky. Penelope liked to learn… if she cared about the subject. She hated History of Magic and Herbology, so she failed both of the required classes her first five years at Hogwarts. Then, McGonagall told her she would not be able to follow her dream if she could not pass Herbology. I guess that was enough to get her motivated.

Penelope- well, I told you a bit about her in the last chapter. A little quiet, a little shy. She had a great memory. She loved numbers and logic puzzles. Had it not been for Tina, I don't think she would have joined the Order. I think she would have been happy in her little cottage above the shop, brewing potions all day long. But no, I do not think she would still be alive. Even if she hadn't joined the Order, she would still have been driven by revenge to find Tina's killer.

Wherever Tina went, Penelope went, and visa versa. Penelope agreed to intern at Gringots, because Tina wanted to. Tina went to yearly potions conventions because Penelope beseeched her to come. So when Tina enthusiastically agreed to join the Order, what else was Penelope to do, but join as well?

I told you the first half of this story in the last chapter. Tina's death. Penelope's thirst for revenge. Now let me finish the tale.

It took Penelope a month to track down Tina's killer. Bellatrix Lestrange. Penelope was always an excellent tracker. She was able to ambush Lestrange in an alley one night, exactly thirty-three days after the death of her best friend. Could she have killed Bellatrix? I don't think so. Bellatrix was an amazing, amazing witch. But she might have been able to escape alive. However, she hadn't counted on one thing- Bellatrix had backup. Tiffany Warton, a Slytherin from our year.

Nobody knows what exactly happened in that alley. It was deserted of all bystanders. But a day later, we got a notification that someone had found dead bodies in an alley. So obviously, we checked. Penelope's body was there. So was Tiffany's. Bellatrix was gone, but a quick _Revelio_ charm showed us that she had been there.

There was a funeral soon after. There were tears, of course. There were tears at every funeral. But the shock factor of death was wearing off. I hate to say it, but death was becoming… a part of our lives.

Now there were only 27 of us. James, Sirius, Peter, Remus, Lily, Alice, Alyssa, Severus, Avery, Mulciber, Antonin, Maxine, Natalie, Tiffany, Benjy, Edgar, Caradoc, Dedalus, Nadia, Amelia, Gracie, Edward, Jordan, Charles, Dorcas, Emmeline, and me; Mary.

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_Liked it? Hated it? Couldn't care less? Let me know! Please, constructive criticism is always appreciated. __**Betheop**__ and __**Mu-Nition**__, thank you so much for your reviews and feedback!_


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